Cuddles and Kisses
by Evil Cosmic Triplets
Summary: Benny likes distracting Ethan, and Ethan doesn't seem to mind. (Erica and Sarah make a brief visit. A picture is worth a thousand words, or a thousand dollars, given the right kind of incentive...)


**Disclaimer:** I do not own the characters of this work of fiction. No profit, monetary or otherwise, is being made through the writing of this.

**A/N:** This is a simple story of romance, sparked by a discussion about cuddles, and then the suggestion of Benny and Ethan, with smug Erica and Sarah. For the sake of this story, both boys are old enough for kissing and cuddling.

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Benny inched closer to Ethan, sneaking a peak over the brunette's shoulder so that he could see what was on the computer screen. Ethan's shoulders stiffened and he cast a sidelong look at his friend.

"Uh, a little space?"

Benny's smile fell, and he hastily moved back, giving Ethan the requested space.

"Sorry." Benny dragged a hand through his hair and let out a breath of air, puffing out his cheeks.

"It's just…" Ethan trailed off, looking over his shoulder at Benny who was sitting on Ethan's bed with his head down.

The picture of dejection, Benny was picking at some thread on the bedspread, worrying it loose. Sighing, Ethan turned around and reached out. He grasped Benny's wrist and stilled the nervous movement.

"It's hard to…" Ethan bit his lower lip and looked away. Blushing, he raised his eyes and met Benny's gaze. "It's hard to concentrate when you're…you know," Ethan's voice cracked, and lowered to a husky whisper as he spoke, "breathing in my ear."

Benny's lips quirked upward in a lopsided grin, and he inched forward. He wrapped his fingers around Ethan's wrist and drew the other boy toward him, unsettling Ethan from the computer chair and causing him to land awkwardly on the bed, legs and arms sprawled out across Benny's lap.

Ethan struggled to right himself and gave his best friend a reproving look when he finally managed to remove himself from his friend's lap, but he made no effort to regain his seat on the computer chair. Instead, he sat beside Benny, shoulders and thighs touching.

"Really?" Benny asked, his eyes twinkling mischievously.

"So, when I breathe into your ear," Benny said, leaning into Ethan's space, and pressing his lips lightly against Ethan's earlobe, "like this," he blew a soft breath against Ethan's ear, "it distracts you?"

Benny nipped playfully at Ethan's earlobe and giggled when the other boy turned and tackled him, straddling his hips and tickling him until there were tears in his eyes.

"Uncle! Uncle!" Benny cried, pushing at Ethan's hands.

Ethan stilled, planting his hands on either side of Benny's head. He stared down at the other boy. Both of them were out of breath and panting. Benny's face was flushed, his lips red and parted. Ethan blinked and then dipped his head and placed a feather light kiss against Benny's lips.

Benny brought his hands up and wrapped them around the back of Ethan's neck, drawing the boy's mouth and lips closer to his own. His fingers curled into Ethan's hair, and he smiled.

Their next kiss was slow. Just lips and teeth. Benny's fingers tugged at Ethan's hair, and Ethan's hands found their way up beneath Benny's tee-shirt where they ghosted over Benny's stomach and ribs, eliciting goose bumps and shivers from the other boy.

Both boys shared a breath, deepening the kiss – tongues dancing and throats undulating and hips moving – before stopping. Ethan pulled away first, flopping down on the bed beside Benny, groaning and biting his lip.

"I kind of like distracting you," Benny said after a minute, during which both boys struggled to catch their breath and get their hormones under control.

"Yeah," Ethan said. He was still a little breathless, and he caught Benny's hand in his own and squeezed as he drew it up to his chest and brushed his lips across Benny's knuckles. "I kind of don't mind you distracting me."

"Cuddle?" Benny asked, and Ethan turned a little, snuggling his head into the crook of Benny's neck.

Benny wrapped his arms around his friend in a tight hug, and Ethan snaked an arm beneath his friend's back. His other arm was draped across Benny's chest, the fingers of his hand twined in Benny's thick, dark hair. Ethan's breath flickered over the portion of Benny's flesh which wasn't covered by his tee-shirt, and then evened out in sleep.

Hours later, when the sun was just beginning to crawl its way across the sky – pink and gold tendrils sneaking their way between the spaces of the blinds and casting Benny and Ethan in an ethereal glow. A strange sound caused Benny's eyebrows to scrunch and his mouth to twist as his sleep was disturbed. He groaned and stretched, accidentally dislodging Ethan from his comfortable position and causing the other boy to frown in his sleep.

Both boys yawned and blinked awake, awareness coming slowly. And, when it finally dawned on them that they were being watched, Benny and Ethan both shot up in bed, scowling and attempting, in vain, to stand and grab the phones from Erica and Sarah who were happily snapping photo after photo of the sleep mussed pair. Both girls were giggling frantically and had smug smiles fixed firmly in place.

"I told you," Erica tossed over her shoulder as Sarah followed her down the stairs when the boys had finally managed to expel the vampires from Ethan's room. "Cuddling. Like little furry rabbits." The blonde sniggered.

"And now we've got the pictures to prove it," Sarah said. "Aww…this one's so cute."

"Great blackmail material is what that is," Erica said drily. "Who would've thought that Ethan was so flexible?"

Benny turned toward Ethan and both boys shook their heads and swiped a hand down their faces and groaned.

"We're not going to be able to convince them to erase those, are we?" Ethan asked.

Benny pursed his lips and shook his head.

"I guess it's good that they didn't actually catch us kissing," Ethan whispered.

"You mean, like this?" Benny asked, and he pressed his lips to Ethan's, the palm of his hand against Ethan's cheek. Ethan nodded; his breath hitching as the kiss intensified.

Neither of the boys heard the girls double back up the stairs and sneak one last photo before slipping back out of the room and leaving the boys to their kiss.

"This one is priceless," Erica said as she reached for Sarah's hand and tugged the smaller vampire along in her wake. "Pure photographic gold."

"A thing of beauty," Sarah agreed with a nod.

"Boys, cuddling," Erica said with a sigh, and then she squeezed Sarah's hand and gave her a quick peck on the cheek.

It was nothing more than a simple token of affection. They weren't quite where the boys were at in their relationship. Not yet ready for cuddles and stolen kisses.

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